1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to aeronautics, and particularly to turbojet engine inlet and exhaust covers that retract automatically upon engine start and deploy automatically upon engine shutdown. The covers serve to prevent the entry of foreign matter into the engine during inoperative periods.
2. Description of the Related Art
The typical turbojet engine provides a relatively large amount of power for its weight, which is why such engines are nearly universally installed on larger and/or faster airplanes. Such engines must ingest correspondingly large amounts of air to support the combustion that produces their thrust, which is delivered entirely in the form of high velocity exhaust gases. Accordingly, the inlets and exhaust nozzles of such engines are correspondingly large.
A common problem with aircraft that remain outdoors for any appreciable amount of time is the contamination of the aircraft by foreign matter entering virtually any available opening. In the spring, birds are well known to nest in virtually any opening or cavity available in an aircraft that is parked outdoors, and birds can build substantial nests in an amazingly short period of time. Nests have been found in open landing gear wells, tail cones, engine inlets, and jet exhaust nozzles in a vast array of different aircraft. Birds can be a particularly troublesome problem in aircraft engines, as their droppings are highly corrosive to many of the metals used in aircraft engines.
Insects are also well known to build nests in virtually any accessible area in an aircraft. Aside from nesting animals, windblown contamination in the form of dust, salt spray in maritime environments, snow, sand, leaves, and/or other debris, depending upon the weather, is commonly found in various openings of aircraft that remain outdoors for any appreciable time. It is of course essential that such foreign matter be removed from the aircraft prior to starting the engines with a degree of care that depends upon the nature of the contamination.
Various temporary turbojet engine inlet and exhaust covers have been developed in the past. These covers are formed of flexible material, such as sheet plastic, oil cloth, or canvas, and are secured to the engine inlet and/or exhaust by lacing or elastic bands. Some of these flexible and/or resilient inlet covers are configured to be compressed slightly to fit internally within the inlet so that their expansion secures them within the inlet. All such devices are removable, and are not permanently attached to the engine or to any part of the airframe.
Thus, turbojet engine inlet and exhaust covers solving the aforementioned problems are desired.